مرکز منطقه ای اطلاع رساني علوم و فناوري - Examination of the Relationship between Metaphoric School Perception and School Dropout Tendency According to Students’ Opinions

Abstract :

In this study, the relationship between high school students’ metaphorical school perception and their school dropout tendency was examined. A total number of 641 high school students, studying during 2015-16 academic years, participated in the study. “School Perception Scale” (SPS) which was developed to measure school perceptions of students via metaphors and “School Experience Scale” (SES) which was developed to determine the students’ school dropout tendency were used as data collection tools. Data were analyzed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), multiple correlation and multiple regression techniques in addition to descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation and correlation. Analysis results showed that students’ perception of school as a place of suppression, as a protecting and improving place and as home were moderate while their school dropout tendency was weak. A moderate significant positive relationship between the perception of school as a place of suppression and negative attitudes towards school was identified. A weakly significant negative relationship was observed between all sub-scales of SES and the perception of school as a protecting and improving place and as home. In addition, it was found that students’ metaphoric perception of school was a significant predictor of school dropout tendency.